The Norwegians; who first arrived in territorial days; created lasting farming settlements; especially in the Red River Valley. Their Lutheran churches continue to dot the landscape. But their experience was also urban; as they entered the trades and industries of the Twin Cities. Today; the Norwegian influence is evident in Minnesota art; culture; cuisine; and speech. Norwegian culture permeates the state's character and helps define Minnesota's unique social; political; and business environment.
#1629905 in Books 2016-10-25Original language:English 8.90 x .50 x 6.00l; .0 #File Name: 0872894045296 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Useful Survey of the Ideals and Realities of Presidential Power in Russia.By mirasreviews"Russian Politics Presidential Power" is a textbook written by Donald R. Kelley; professor of political science at the University of Arkansas who has written extensively on the Soviet Union and Russia; to illuminate the powers and limitations of the presidency in Russia; as well as to place it in the context of the political system that emerged since the fall of the Soviet Union and; to a lesser extent; in the context of Russian history. Mikhail Gorbachev created the office of the president in 1990; so Kelley's discussion of its role begins there and intensifies once the presidency took its current form in 1993; then continues well into Vladimir Putin's third term in office; which will end in 2018. Kelley examines the Russian presidency using the concept of the "authoritarian modernizer"; of which Russian history has plenty; so Kelley begins with brief histories of the roles played by earlier modernizers: Peter the Great; Alexander II; V. I. Lenin; Joseph Stalin; and Nikita Khrushchev.Kelley dedicates a chapter to Mikhail Gorbachev's presidency; explaining what role he intended the office to play; his policy goals; why Gorbachev's gradualist approach to reforms got so out of hand; and his disagreements with future president Boris Yeltsin over the pace of economic reform and the relationship between the republics and the central government. Kelly dedicates two chapters to Boris Yeltsin; the first about his rise to power and his reform agenda; the second covering his creation of a presidential-parliamentary system inspired by the French Fifth Republic and the 1993 constitution. He addresses Yeltsin's difficulties as a populist leader who was not especially good at details or management; the first Chechen War; Russia's 1998 financial crisis and subsequent default; his privatizing economic agenda; and eventual resignation after placing his chosen successor Vladimir Putin in the position of prime minister.The Putin era claims the most space; of course; as it spans four presidential terms; including that of Dmitri Medvedev during which Vladimir Putin served as prime minister. The author takes us through the presidential and Duma elections that saw Putin and United Russia triumphant during his first two terms 2000-2008 and Putin able to deftly free himself from the control of the Yeltsin family. Kelley lays out Putin's goals; strategy; challenges; successes and failures that ultimately provided "a stable foundation for an economic recovery"; saw Russian standards of living increase markedly; and paid off Russian sovereign debt but included the second Chechen War and a more assertive foreign policy. Kelley points out the smooth transition and success of the "tandem" during Medvedev's 2008-2012 presidency; his "reset" of US-Russian relations; but also failed anti-corruption policies and the disagreements between Medvedev and Putin on the direction of economic reforms.This brings us to Vladimir Putin's third presidential term; in which he became what political scientists call a "modernizing nationalist." He looked for ways to consolidate his power after it was clear that many of his original promises were not fulfilled in the long term; for reasons not always within his control. While Putin is still very popular outside of major cities; people get impatient. Kelley focuses on Putin's critical role as mediator between political factions of all stripes; which has become more complex with time; the political and economic costs of Russia's policy in Ukraine; and the state of political parties; civil society; and the media in Russia currently. Kelley concludes the book with speculation about the future of Russian politics. He offers some scenarios that could "fundamentally transform the nature of factional politics;" scenarios in electoral politics that could bring about unpredictable changes; and the possibility of a "color revolution" in Russia."Russian Politics Presidential Power" explains the power of the presidency in Russia; how it interacts with factions; and the challenges it faces putting any agenda into practice. The book does not say much about how the Duma functions or how legislation is passed. Donald R. Kelley tends to view Russian politics in the context of a nation transitioning from communism and its "authoritarian modernizers" in a similar context to those in the developing world. While Russia is those things; I find it more valuable to consider its authoritarianism in the context of geographically isolated nations of long-standing whose cultures invariably value cohesion; a strong central government; require periodic drastic modernizing; and are authoritarian. If you're going to compare Russia to something; it would make more sense to compare it to China; Japan; or Sweden than to Western liberal democracies or to third world modernizers. Kelley doesn't explicitly compare Russia to anything; but he implicitly judges its authoritarianism by a standard that I don't think fits. The information he presents on politics and presidential power in Russia is straightforward and useful; however; and that is what the book is about.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Russian Politics and Presidential PowerBy Alla S.The author is a professor of political science; and the scholarly approach to this book worked well. It starts of with a brief overview of Russian politics (including a bit about czars; and very brief highlights about the tenures of Soviet Union leaders up until Gorbachev (including Stalin; Lenin; Khrushchev; Brezhnev; and very brief mentioning of the two interlude leaders--Andropov; the former head of KGB; and Chernenko; who both stayed in power for only one to two years before dying. After this brief introduction; the book then shifts to the meat--in this case; the book is based upon the "main players" of recent modern Russian history--Gorbachev; Yeltsin's two terms; Putin's multiple terms; Medvedev's interlude; as well as the future of Russian politics. I found this book very informative about the changing dynamics of presidential power and Russian politics overall; under each leader.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. "a riddle; wrapped in a mystery; inside an enigma"By Found HighwaysAs an amateur Russia watcher since the 1970s; I've found Russian politics fascinating; if often perplexing. Reading Donald R. Kelley's Russian Politics and Presidential Power was like reviewing the past thirty years of the news from Russia; but this time with a knowledgeable and patient guide to explain what was going on and how it can be explained in retrospect. It's not a long book; and you don't even have to read it from start to finish; you can skip around if certain events are of more interest to you than others. It won't make Russian politics any less perplexing; it won't enable you to predict the future of Russia; but it might make what's happening just a bit more understandable.
